Confluence
by Ginchiyo
Summary: Heartbreak and tragedy bring both Soujiro and Misao together in Tokyo and as they struggle to come to terms with their own seperate sufferings, they must also deal with the threat coming from a ghost of the past seeking vengeance. MisaoSoujiro.
1. Prologue

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Confluence - Destiny's Path

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Author's Note: While I totally love the Aoshi/Misao pairing to bits, I started reading a few of the Misao/Soujiro pairings and I felt inspired to write something similar. I've tried to make this seem as realistic as possible, but still make it mushy :) 'Cus everyone likes a bit of cheesy mush every now and then.

I'm starting the story two years after the end of the Kyoto Arc.

Disclaimers: None of these characters belong to me, yack yack yack.

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Prologue

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Breathing heavily Misao stared up at the man she had loved for all of her short life, her heart beating loudly in her chest and her thoughts completely consumed by the Adonis of a man standing with his arms wrapped around her.

In his arms she felt safe, secure and unbearably happy. Not looking at her, Aoshi's arms tightened gently around her small frame and she exhaled a breath of satisfaction as she was drawn closer to him. _If only this had happened sooner,_ Misao thought as she breathed in the musky smell of his gi. Finally, he had acknowledged her feelings for him and despite his silence he wasn't rejecting her.

"Aoshi-sama…" Misao whispered as she softly leant her forehead against his chest and shut her eyes, wanting to savour the moment as much as possible. She had dreamt of this for so many weeks, months, years… She knew that if anyone was able to read her mind they would have told her she sounded like the heroine in some cheesy romance novel, but she didn't care. She was content.

Reaching up and grabbing onto the front of his gi, she tugged him forward, willing him to finally kiss her after all those years of longing and waiting. Following the direction he was being tugged towards Aoshi leant forward and gently brushed her lips with his, sending shockwaves through Misao's tiny body with just that lingering butterfly-soft kiss.

However, Aoshi pulled away before Misao could force him to deepen it. His body stiffened and his expression looked pained as she looked up at him anxiously, not understanding what was happening.

Shaking his head, Aoshi released Misao from his embrace and took a small step back. Misao stared at him with wide eyes as he bowed his head and made his way out of the room wordlessly, leaving her with her mixed emotions and confusion.

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Wiping his forehead and sighing, Soujiro made his way through the small town. The sun was just setting and he could see storm clouds rolling in from the east. He was tired, hungry and in need of a place to stay the night unless he wanted to sleep outside in the rain, which was something that brought back too many memories of the past. Checking his purse, he realised he had only a little money left and that he probably would only be able to afford either a meal or a place to stay the night.

Frowning, he debated with himself about what he was going to do as he unconsciously made his way over to a restaurant-inn called the Ichiriki.

Entering the cool interior of the restaurant, Soujiro smiled slightly and took a sweeping glance across the room. It was a simple establishment and it seemed relatively empty, which was probably why only one waitress was working.

As he surveyed the restaurant, his attention was captured by the waitress and he silently appraised her, taking in the simplicity of her beauty. With long shining black hair and large, honest brown eyes, Soujiro found himself… attracted… to her? An emotion that he hadn't felt before swept over him as she turned around to greet him, an unguarded smile on her face.

"Hello sir, can I help you at all?" she asked merrily, taking in his slightly weathered appearance with some amusement.

Soujiro gaped at her for a moment before holding out his money and asking with embarrassment, "Can I get a room here with this? I don't have very much, but I was hoping it would be enough."

The waitress looked at the few coins before exclaiming cheerfully, "Tell you what, I'll take your money and give you a room, seeing as you look so tired. I'll throw in some free tempura too. Now, if you'd take a seat, I'll go tell one of the other girls to get the room ready."

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Misao sat cross-legged in the training room with her eyes shut as she tried to ignore the drumming of the rain on the roof. Sighing, she opened her eyes and nearly jumped out of her skin when she saw Aoshi standing in the doorway, watching her with his blue-green eyes. Raising an eyebrow as she stood up, she looked at Aoshi challengingly, folding her arms across her chest.

Ever since that day he had pulled away from her, he had been acting hot and cold with her, playing about with her feelings and confusing her to no end. Now she had had enough; she wouldn't stand for it any longer.

"What do you want, Aoshi-san?" Misao asked. Ever since deciding that he was messing with her too much, Misao had stopped calling him by the –sama honorific as a way of showing him how annoyed he was making her.

Aoshi sighed heavily before heading over to Misao and gently grasping her arms in his hands, causing Misao to flinch in irritation slightly. She steeled herself against the familiar sensation of her heart speeding up and her palms beginning to sweat, all symptoms of her feelings for him. She looked away from him and instead focused her eyes on the window where she saw water cascading off of the roof as the rain relentlessly beat down.

"Misao. I owe you an apology," Aoshi stated simply, looking down at her, hoping her eyes would meet his. The tone in his voice caused her to look up. Looking into his eyes, Misao could see a sadness in them which made her realise what was going to happen. Bottling up her tears, she stared up at him defiantly, her jaw jutting out ever so slightly in her indignant rage as she felt her body begin to shake lightly with impending rage.

Aoshi simply looked at her for another few moments before continuing, "Misao. I know that you've… loved me… for a very long time. I acknowledged that a long time ago. I've tried so very hard to make myself believe that I return your feelings, but I realise now that I cannot. I want to give you all the things you want, but I can't. They're broken… Gone… And I can't love you the way you deserve."

By now, Misao had pulled away from his grasp and was staring up at him in disbelief. She didn't want to accept the truth. It was ruining everything that she had dreamed about and she felt as if her heart was breaking as her brain processed his words. She couldn't understand why after all these months of lingering glances and awkward moments he was telling her that he didn't love; despite kissing her several times and leading her to believe the opposite.

Her emotions raged within her as she stared at him, her eyes ablaze with a furious mania, and finally finding her voice she screamed, "You've known this the whole time and you didn't tell me till now?!"

"Misao… I…" Aoshi began, but Misao cut him short.

"I can't believe you've done this to me. I can't believe you have strung me along for all this time!" Misao raged, running up to him and pounding her clenched fists against his chest in fury. Aoshi did not back away, merely standing there and taking her punches before wrapping his arms around her in an attempt to mollify and restrain her. However, this fuelled her anger and she pushed against him, stumbling back with the force she had used.

Wiping her mouth and breathing shakily, she looked at him before shaking her head and murmuring, "You broke me heart Aoshi. I don't think I'll ever forgive you."

"Misao, please don't be like thi-" Aoshi started but once again Misao cut him short.

"No! Don't try and pacify me with lies of being friends with me! I just…" Misao collapsed to her knees and hung her head for a moment before staring up him with tear filled eyes and pointing to the door. Shaking with the effort, Misao rasped, "Get out! I want you out! Out of my life! Don't you dare speak, touch or come near me ever again! I don't want to see you in front of me ever again!"

"Stop being so over-dramatic," Aoshi scolded her, folding his arms across his chest and staring down at her with thinly veiled annoying.

Misao stopped crying for a minute and looked at Aoshi as if she couldn't understand him, her mouth agape as she looked at him in total disbelief. Over-dramatic? She was being _over-dramatic_?! Even after all this time he still looked down on her as if she were a child, as if _he_ were still Okashira. His condescending expression and the tone of voice he used were all indicative of what he thought, how she was nothing more than a puppet Okashira.

She sat in silence for a minute, looking up at him in disappointment as tears still trailed their way down her cheeks. She sniffed loudly before saying in the most dignified voice she could muster, "Aoshi, you're nothing to me now. You're not a brother, you're not a friend. I don't want to know you or what you do. I don't want to see you at the dinner table, I don't want to see you near my room. If you're going to be hanging around the restaurant with the others, I want to know in advance so I won't be there. You understand?"

Aoshi stood staring at Misao in shock at what she said. He took in the defiant, steadfast glare she was looking at him with and she knew that she truly meant what she said. She was implacable. He hung his head for a moment before nodding slowly, understanding that Misao was giving him an order. Not a request, an order.

"Now get out," Misao told him before she slumped forward and pressed her forehead to the floor, crying silently as her hands moved to cover her ears and blot out the rest of the world. When it finally sunk in that she had cut Aoshi out of her life, she gave out a noisy sob. She sat up quickly and wailed in despair as she felt the gut wrenching pain of reality set in, and she clutched at her stomach before doubling over again and resting her head on the floor.

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The rain beat down heavily on Soujiro as he sat looking up into the sky, tears falling from his eyes as he stared. How he hated the rain. Whenever it rained bad things happened to him. Terrible things. Life shattering events that had carved him into what he was now.

Shifting in his kneeling position and staring down at the girl sitting on his lap, he heaved another crying sob, holding her body closer to him. He had finally found something worth living for. Her name was Kiko. The waitress from the Ichiriki. She had become his life over the past year of having met her. She was beautiful, gracious and woke up so many emotions in him that he couldn't count them all. But she had been ill. Even when they first met she was slowly dying of the incurable illness that had claimed her mother. The western doctors called it tuberculosis.

When she finally knew that her last day had come, Kiko had asked Soujiro to take her outside so she could see the sky before she died, in spite of the rain. It was an odd request, but he complied and carried her towards the top of the hill that overlooked Osaka. It had just started to rain when he had sat down with her on his lap, fighting the urge to shiver against the cold winds.

"I'm sorry, Soujiro," she mumbled softly, not minding the fact that the rain had started beating down on them relentlessly. She couldn't feel it anymore. Death was so close that all she could feel was the comfort of being in Soujiro's arms. Coughing slightly, she swallowed the blood that she had come up before brushing her hand against his cheek, taking in his innocent, boyish beauty.

Pulling her to him tightly, Soujiro whispered in her ear the words that he had been longing to tell her all year but hadn't had the courage to till now when it was too late, "I… I love you Kiko."

"I know that you love me. I've known that for a long time," Kiko said gently, smoothing away the strands of hair that had plastered to his face in the rain. She gently caressed his then soaked skin, her eyes staring up at him lovingly. He was her knight in shining armour; he had helped her endlessly over the last year and in return she gave him her love. She didn't know about his past, but he cared for her and that was enough for her.

"Why did the chicken cross the road, Soujiro?" Kiko asked as cheerfully as she could, bringing up a joke that they used to childishly laugh at, in spite of it's stupidity.

"To get to the other side, Kiko-chan," Soujiro replied sadly, looking down at her and stroking her jaw line gently. He hated the fact that he wasn't able to hold and caress her like this before now, being held back by his unwillingness to taint her with his blood-soaked history.

"I'm going to the other side now, Soujiro," Kiko said peacefully, her hand dropping from his face.

Understanding what she meant, Soujiro's eyes widened and he pulled her to him once more, embracing her tightly as he cried, "Don't leave me Kiko. Please. Stay with me. Stay with me Kiko."

However, Kiko could no longer hear him and said weakly, "Be happy, Soujiro."

With that, she allowed eternal darkness to descend upon her and consume her entirely.

The light went out in her eyes.

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Misao sat bent over the piece of paper as she wrote her goodbye note by the light of a single candle. She sniffled quietly as she wrote, pausing to wipe her tears away every now and then before beginning to write again.

She was leaving. She had no other choice. Aoshi wasn't going to leave the Aoiya any time soon as she had hoped and she couldn't bear to be anywhere near him at the moment, feeling that her emotions were still raw with his rejection. She had spent the last month crying herself to sleep in her room and it was when she heard Omasu and Ochika talking about how worried they were about her, she decided that she needed to take a break. She needed to get away for a while.

Opting to write a goodbye note instead of telling them in person, Misao felt it was for the best. She could imagine how Omasu and Ochika would cry, and how Jiya would angrily tell her off for being so stupidly childish. Yes, she was still a child in their eyes, in spite of the fact that she had been their Okashira for two years. In spite of the fact that she was eighteen.

Feeling more tears fall down her face she ignored them and wrote her letter determinedly, not realising that her tears were blurring the ink slightly. When she was finally finished she folded it up and wrote 'Jiya' on the front in her best hand writing before setting it aside and beginning to pack.

Pausing for a second to look out her window at the city below, Misao felt strange that she was leaving it again. She remembered her wanderings before when she was looking for Aoshi and how she had entertained herself with the notion that he would fall madly in love with her if she found him. They were such naïve dreams; the dreams of a teenager desperate for love.

Smiling slightly, despite how painful those memories were, she continued to pack and by the time she was ready the sun had started to rise. Stealthily moving around the Aoiya she approached Jiya's room and slid the goodbye note under his shoji and started moving to go downstairs, it was then that she noticed something. Turning around, she saw Aoshi looking at her from the balcony across the courtyard.

Standing stock still, she stared at him first with the shock of being caught and then next with a contempt. He had broken her heart and he still had the audacity to show his face to her and make her feel bad for leaving them all without a proper goodbye. His expression remained unfathomable as she scowled at him before turning her back and making her way down the stairs to leave the Aoiya.

She tried to take in as much as possible before leaving the building; the smell of cinnamon, the sight of the courtyard, the feel of the tatami flooring under her feet. _I'm going to miss this place…_ she thought to herself before sliding open the front door and leaving the building quietly.

As she walked down the main street that led away from the Aoiya, she thought about where she was heading. She was sure she didn't want to wander Japan for ten years the way that Kenshin had, but where was she to go? Where would she find open arms? Reminded of Kenshin, she decided that maybe that was where she ought to go to him and Kaoru first. Surely they would welcome her?

"Misao," she heard a deep voice, now noticing that someone was following her.

Knowing who it was, Misao didn't turn around and continued to walk away, not acknowledging his existence. She had nothing to say to him and didn't feel that he deserved any explanation. Hearing him sigh and stop following, she stiffened slightly as she heard him say, "Make sure you come back. Or else I'll never forgive myself."

Angrily, Misao impulsively turned around and hissed, "Stop being so damn selfish all the time! Don't you realise that there are other people except you in the world? You don't realise that your self pitying behaviour affects everyone around you and drags them down too. If you're going to stop me just because you wouldn't forgive yourself if I got hurt, then you can go and stick it. I don't need you. And as I told you before, I don't care about you or what you do."

Whirling back around, Misao stalked off into the night, not allowing herself to cry the tears she was keeping bottled up.

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"Soujiro-chan, where are you going?" a small voice asked behind him. He turned to look at Kiko's younger sister, Mai. She was a miniature version of her sister and looking at her made him waver slightly for a moment before he replied, "I'm… I'm going to keep wandering. Maybe visit an old friend that I haven't seen for a while."

"You're leaving us?" Mai asked meekly, staring up at him with her large brown eyes. Soujiro stared at her sadly for a couple of seconds before nodding. He had no other choice. Remaining in that little town brought back too many happy memories of Kiko and he wasn't quite sure he was stable enough to remain there. The emotions were too much for him, too painful.

Mai sighed sadly before saying, "I'm sorry you have to leave. I know that Kiko would have wanted you to be happy, so if wandering will make you happy, I won't stop you."

Soujiro bowed his head for a second before looking up at Mai and smiling as cheerfully as he could. He hadn't forced a smile on his face for a year and it felt odd to start doing so again, but it was something he could hide behind; it covered up his weakness.

Turning slowly, Soujiro left the village without another word, memories of his brief time with Kiko still fresh in his memory. As he passed various places in town he remembered everything about her with painful accuracy, causing tears to well up in his eyes as memories flooded back to him. How she smelt of sweet oranges, how she loved to eat sweets which westerners called chocolates, the brightly coloured kimono's she wore, her funny way of sneezing several times in a row…

Wiping his tears away before they could fall, Soujiro resolved not to think of her. To put her out of his mind until he reached Tokyo. He had already sent a letter to Kenshin asking if he could stay with him and Kaoru. He had briefly explained the situation with Kiko, something that had been difficult to do without breaking down, and Kenshin speedily replied that he could stay with them for as long as he needed. While he knew that Kenshin wouldn't mind him being there, he had a feeling that Kaoru wouldn't be too happy, but he had promised he wouldn't be there too long.

He just needed to talk to someone.


	2. Arrival in Tokyo

Disclaimers: None of these characters belong to me, yack yack yack.

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Chapter 1 – Arrival in Tokyo

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"Misao-chan! Wha- what are you doing here?" Kaoru exclaimed as she saw Misao standing at the door of dojo.

For a second Kaoru paused and took in Misao's altered appearance. While the girl carried a definite air of sadness, she had changed a great deal the past year and a bit since they had last seen her. Instead of her hair being in a long braid down her back it was left out of its braided state and hung down her back in long waves, while she wore a light green kimono patterned with pink butterflies and the kimono fitted her well. Having finally grown to develop a more feminine figure, Misao had finally matured into a woman physically, as she had always hoped.

"Kaoru…" Misao said, trying to hold back tears. Sniffing, she dried her eyes hurriedly with her sleeves and said quietly, "I'm sorry. I don't mean to intrude on you like this Kaoru-chan… I- I just had no where to turn. And… I needed to see a friendly face."

Not quite understanding what had happened, but noting that Misao looked incredibly upset, Kaoru went to Misao and pulled her into a tight hug. Misao responded by clutching at Kaoru and beginning to sob uncontrollably into her shoulder. Kaoru could feel her friend's tears seep through the fabric of her kimono and she wondered at what had brought this on. Gently rubbing her friend's back and allowing her to cry on her shoulder, Kaoru felt increasingly wary of what had brought on her friend's sudden appearance and apparent distress.

After Misao's sobs had started dying down, Kaoru pulled away from her and Kaoru looked into Misao's eyes. Judging from the loneliness she perceived in them, whatever had brought this on was caused by Aoshi. Smoothing out her friend's hair and taking her bag, Kaoru asked gently, "What did he say?"

At Kaoru's obvious comprehension of the situation, Misao felt more tears well up in her eyes and she struggled to stop herself from collapsing to her knees. The noise attracted Kenshin's attention and Kaoru looked up to see him standing by the steps of the dojo looking at Misao with worry. He and Kaoru exchanged glances, immediately understanding each other, and Kaoru tried her best to usher the young girl into the sitting room. Kenshin watched them in concern, wondering what Aoshi had done that had caused Misao to be so upset.

"Right, Misao. Tell me what happened," Kaoru began after she had successfully guided her friend to the comfort of the sitting room. By then Misao's tears had finally stopped and she was breathing shakily from having cried so hard, her green eyes slightly puffy from her tears. Handing her friend some tea that Kenshin had just brought in, Kaoru settled back on her knees and waited for Misao to regain her composure and explain her unexpected visit.

"I just… I'm sorry I'm here. I just needed to get away for a bit. Just so I can sort my head out before going back there and leading the Oniwabanshuu the way it deserves to be led," Misao said shakily, setting down her tea. She looked around the room, remembering how she once sat in this room with Kaoru, Megumi, Omasu and Ochika talking about how Aoshi did in fact have feelings for her.

Bitterness overwhelmed her at this fleeting memory and she bit back tears as she continued and explained all that happened. As she did, Kaoru began to understand why Misao was so upset. He had given her his final answer and it wasn't the one she had wanted. Misao shut her eyes in an attempt to stop her tears from falling and she didn't see Kaoru reach over and pull her into a hug again.

While Kaoru felt a great deal of pity for her friend, she couldn't help but think that it was for the best. Even if Aoshi had in fact professed that he loved Misao, it wouldn't have worked; Misao and Aoshi were far too different to work in the long term. She was cheerful and bubbly, he was quiet and stoic. They had little in common apart from their ties to the Oniwabanshuu and she could imagine Misao growing restless in their relationship. However, Kaoru kept her thoughts to herself and knew she'd have to help Misao get over it as best she could.

"Misao-chan… although things seem bleak at the moment, you have to remember that saying, 'When one door closes, another one opens'. While your heart may feel broken, you'll be surprised how resilient the hearts of people our age are. You'll never forget your first love, but you'll learn to forgive him," Kaoru said as she released Misao from her embrace, "For now, stay here and try to enjoy yourself. I'm not sure what the arrangements are as we will soon have another guest with us, though I'm not sure when he's due to arrive."

"He? It's not Aoshi is it?!" Misao asked in a panic, thinking that Aoshi had followed her to make sure she was alright. However, before she could get into any more of a frenzied panic, Kaoru's hand clamped down on hers and she shook her head silently.

While breathing a sigh of relief, Misao watched Kaoru get up and make her way out, leaving the shoji open. She sat alone in silence for a few moments, digesting what Kaoru had said. _You'll never forget your first love…_ she mused quietly, feeling slightly depressed at the thought of not being able to forget him; it would have made things so much simpler.

Licking her lips and sighing, Misao slowly got up and made her way outside to find Kaoru and Kenshin canoodling as he did the laundry, not noticing her at all. The sight sent waves of envy overwhelming her and she forced herself to walk out of the dojo, leaving the couple to canoodle alone. She didn't want to make things awkward for them, especially after they were kindly agreeing to let her stay with them. Sighing, she headed into town with no idea of where she was going. She roughly knew where everything was, but she didn't want to run into any old acquaintances just yet and resolved to avoid places she remembered.

Stopping at the bridge over the river, Misao leaned over the side and looked down at her reflection in the water. The young woman looking back at her looked like she had lost an essential part of her; she was no longer vibrant and cheery as she had been as a child. It wasn't long before her reflection was disturbed by tears falling into the water as the young woman felt her emotions override her common sense once again. _Why is it so hard to let go?_ Misao thought as she sobbed over the side.

Meanwhile, Soujiro had finally reached Tokyo. The journey had been long, but it had been filled with more than enough to keep him from thinking of Kiko. Looking around the city curiously, he felt strangely glad that he had chosen to come here instead of heading back to Kyoto to look for Kamatari as he had been tempted to do so before.

Re-adjusting the bag slung over his shoulder, he made his way down the main road, his eyes watchful for a flash of that red hair that belonged to Kenshin. However, he saw no sign of the older man and knew that he probably wouldn't find him until he reached the dojo.

As he headed in the general direction of the Kamiya dojo he came to a bridge where he found a young woman crying over the side, her small frame heaving with the force of her sobs. He stopped in his tracks as soon as he saw her, unsure of what to do. Should he go over there and see what was wrong? Or keep on walking? His benevolent side won and he slowly walked towards her, unsure of how to approach the situation as he had never dealt with crying strangers before.

He cleared his throat loudly before asking, "Um… are you alright miss?"

Misao sniffed and looked up to see a young man peering at her with a worried expression and she felt that she recognised him from somewhere but couldn't remember his name. Shaking the thought out of her head she suddenly realised he was actually genuinely worried and he was waiting for an answer. After taking a deep breath Misao replied weakly, "I'm… I'll be fine. Thank you for asking."

"Are you sure? Is there anything I can do? Escort you home?" Soujiro offered politely. He didn't feel comfortable with leaving her to cry alone. It didn't settle well with him and he wanted to make sure that she got home safely, instead of being left alone on the streets of Tokyo where anything could happen.

Fleetingly, he glanced up and found himself instantly captivated by the view of the setting sun and he smiled as he took in how the light was dispersed over the landscape. Noticing that he was looking at the sunset, Misao also turned her attention to it as well and she unknowingly allowed a sigh to escape her lips. She smiled and muttered gently, "If only more things were that beautiful."

"Yeah," Soujiro agreed before turning back to the young woman who was still enchanted by the setting sun.

Appraising her in that spare moment, he took in the long black hair that fell to just above her waist, her curvaceous figure and the bold green hue of her eyes. She seemed familiar, yet the sight of her was completely alien to him and he knew he'd never be able to put a name to her face. At that exact moment she turned around to look at him and caught him staring at her, causing him to quickly look away and blush. Looking over to the other side of the bridge he asked, "So, Miss, is there anywhere you need to get to? I'll ensure you get there safely."

Misao looked at him in wonderment and couldn't quite understand why he was so polite, nor could she understand why she recognised him. It really bugged her and she was very tempted to ask if she'd met him somewhere in Kyoto, but she held her tongue and instead said, "Um. Well, I'm going to the Kamiya dojo, so you can escort me there if you want?"

"Kamiya dojo?" he asked, slightly taken back. Since when did Kenshin and Kaoru have another lodger? He looked at her curiously with his dark blue eyes before stating, "Well, I was just heading there myself. I'll gladly escort you there. But please, tell me your name first."

"Oh, Misao Makimachi. And you are?" Misao asked, glad that she could know find out who he was. After hearing that he was also heading towards the Kamiya dojo she knew that she had to have known him from somewhere, put she couldn't quite put her finger on it.

"Soujiro Seta," he replied, flashing her a smile.


	3. Suspicions and Shadows

…

_He looked at her curiously with his dark blue eyes before stating, "Well, I was just heading there myself. I'll gladly escort you there. But please, tell me your name first."_

"_Oh, Misao Makimachi. And you are?" Misao asked, glad that she could know find out who he was. After hearing that he was also heading towards the Kamiya dojo she knew that she had to have known him from somewhere, put she couldn't quite put her finger on it._

"_Soujiro Seta," he replied, flashing her a dashing smile._

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Chapter 2 – Suspicions and Shadows

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At hearing that name Misao jumped slightly, her eyes widening as she stared at him in amazement. Kami-sama, how did she not recognise him instantly? True, he had changed a little; now looking less like a little boy and more like a young man. She remembered him vividly; her memory of his fight with Kenshin almost as clear as if it had only been yesterday. He had been such a creepy looking guy back then, but now he seemed to actually have emotions and she could clearly see from the expression on his face that he was a little worried about why she was freaking out at his name.

"The Tenken," Misao stated simply, staring at him blankly. She dropped her girly act that she often used with strangers and instead looked at him suspiciously as if he were still the enemy, her posture shifting slightly in case he moved to attack her. It then suddenly hit her, why was he going to the Kamiya dojo in the first place? Narrowing her eyes at him and folding her arms she asked him warily, "Why are you going to the Kamiya dojo?"

"I'm staying there as a guest. How do you know I'm the Tenken? Do I know you from somewhere?" he asked in confusion. While she had instantly remembered him from his name, he couldn't for the life of him remember where he knew her. However, judging from Misao's expression she didn't seem pleased with the fact that he couldn't remember her at all; despite the fact that she had stood right next to him and watched him battle Kenshin.

"I can't believe you don't remember me!" Misao yelled loudly before stomping off towards the dojo.

It was in that instant that she shouted at him that he vaguely remembered her shouting at Kenshin in that same manner the first time they fought at Shishio's manor in Shingetsu village. He blinked in shock as he compared the memory of the skinny girl back then with the shapely woman she was now; was it possible for someone to change that much in such a short space of time?

Using his speed to catch up with her instantly, she shrieked in surprise as appeared next to her and nearly fell over into the river as shock caused her to back away from him. However, Soujiro grabbed the front of her kimono and righted her before saying, "I remember you now. You're that girl that kept shrieking at Kenshin and called Shishio 'that mummy guy'. Am I correct?"

"Uh… I guess," Misao said, slightly confused at how he remembered what she had said with such clarity when only a few moments ago he couldn't remember her at all. Not only was she confused, but she had already reinforced her dislike of him; she didn't like being frightened and being grabbed at by freakish guys that couldn't stop smiling. It didn't sit well with her.

"So why are you going to the Kamiya dojo? Aren't you supposed to be the Okashira of the Oniwabanshuu? Shouldn't you be in Kyoto right now?" He asked, not realising he was being a little overbearing with his questions. He continued to smile innocently as she shot him a sideward glance of disdain. He knew that she didn't like him simply because he and Kenshin had been opponents and he had to admit that her blatant suspicion amused him a great deal.

"I'm on a holiday. I don't really want to talk about it," Misao replied, folding her arms and resolving not to say anything more. She didn't feel that she needed to justify herself to anyone, especially not insufferable smiling idiots.

"Oh. Well. I'm sure it'll be fun staying at the Kamiya dojo. I haven't seen Kenshin since our fight in Kyoto two years ago," Soujiro mused, resting his hand on his sword gently.

Noticing the sword now, Misao wondered about whether he really was the other guest or if he was just using her to get to the dojo. Almost as if he could hear what she was thinking he told her, "Don't worry, I'm not planning to hurt anyone at the dojo."

Misao nodded, though she wasn't sure about the truth of his words. By the time they had reached the dojo the sun had completely set and they were walking together in lamp light. They knocked on the door of the dojo and when Kenshin opened the door he was a little shocked that the two of them had turned up together. Kaoru and Kenshin had spent the past hour worrying about where Misao had been and to have her turn up with Soujiro was a little surprising, but he was glad she had come back in one piece.

Kenshin and Soujiro's greeting had been a little awkward at first, but seeing that there was a lot on the boy's mind Kenshin knew that Soujiro had a lot to talk to him about. But not tonight.

"Right, sleeping arrangements," Kaoru said unsurely. She glanced at Kenshin who gave her a nod before continuing, "You two are going to have to share a room I'm afraid. While Yahiko isn't around here a lot of the time, he does come home to sleep every now and then so we can't let you guys sleep in there. I hope that's okay."

"That's fine with me Kaoru-san," Soujiro chirped, but Misao interjected and asked nervously, "I'm sharing a room with the perma-smile?"

"Yes Misao. I'm sorry, but you're an unexpected guest. We couldn't make any other arrangements I'm afraid. We can ask Yahiko about whether he's spending the whole week at the Akabeko or not. For now this will just have to do," Kaoru said apologetically. She watched as Misao squirmed on the spot for a moment, almost as if she was trying to suppress one of her hissy fits that she often threw when she was forced to do something she didn't like.

Wrinkling her nose in irritation, Misao stomped ahead of Soujiro to the spare room, wanting to claim her futon first. Pulling back the shoji she was glad to note that the futons were on two opposite walls, even though she was still very wary of sharing a room with a guy.

"Beggars can't be choosers, Misao-san," Soujiro said as he set his bag down in the corner and started rummaging around in it. It was then that Misao realised that changing into her sleeping yukata would be a problem. Picking up the yukata that Kaoru had laid out for her, she turned to Soujiro and commanded, "Keep facing that direction and don't turn around or I'll skin you in your sleep."

"Okay, sure," Soujiro said before sitting down facing the corner, his eyes fixed on the wall.

He heard the rustle of clothing and it was then that Soujiro realised that he could see Misao's silhouette on the wall, watching as her shadow took her kimono off and revealed her naked form. Sitting in shock he swallowed hard, finding himself unusually aware of everything around him as he blushed at having seen Misao's curvaceous shape shadowed on the wall. Sure, he hadn't seen her naked, but that was very close and he felt his cheeks burning with embarrassment.

When she was done she chirped, "Okay, I'm finished."

Gulping, he turned around to find her crawling under the covers of her futon and turning away from him, giving him the chance to change without her seeing him. Taking the opportunity, he removed his gi and in that instance where he couldn't see anything save for the gi over his head, Misao snuck a peak. Sure, she wasn't being fair, but it was alright seeing as he was a guy. The sight of his exposed chest had a strange affect on her. He wasn't overly muscular in the way that the big Senkaku dude in Shingetsu had been, but there was definitely muscle there and Misao gulped loudly, turning away quickly as Soujiro finally got his gi over his head.

After he had finished changing into his own yukata, Misao turned onto her back, folding her hands behind her head and staring up at him, she watched as he blew out the candle before crawling under the covers With darkness descended upon them, they both fell asleep quickly. However, Soujiro could sleep only for a couple of hours before finding himself wake once more, painful memories searing in his mind and penetrating his dreams. Restlessly he got up and went to sit outside where he could look up at the moon, a sight that always instilled peace in him, no matter what had happened.

Having always been a light sleeper since the first time Aoshi had left her, the sound of Soujiro sliding the shoji open and shut woke her and she lay in the dark listening to him move outside for a few minutes. Why is he up so freaking early! Misao thought angrily, throwing her covers aside and stomping over to the shoji. She threw it aside, ready to start whisper-yelling at him (as she wanted to be considerate to Kaoru and Kenshin) but she stopped when she saw him sitting there looking up at the moon with a pained expression on his face.

Surprised, she watched him from the doorway for a couple of seconds before he wiped his eyes and turned to look at her with a blank expression that she'd often seen Aoshi wear. He stared at her as she stood bathed in moonlight before saying apologetically, "I'm sorry if I woke you. I just couldn't sleep."

"That's pretty obvious," Misao said bitterly before adding grudgingly, "I was going to yell at you, but you look like you're already having a rough night, so I'll go easy on you tonight. Do try and get some sleep, aa?"

"Hai," Soujiro replied, his eyes fixed on the moon.

Misao looked at him, traces of worry contorting her face into a half grimace, half scowl before she left him and went back to bed. As she lay in bed she thought about how mean she had been to him since meeting him again and after seeing him outside like that she couldn't help but feel a little guilty. It shocked her that he was in pain, only being able to remember him as an emotionless opponent.

Thinking of emotionless people, Aoshi floated into her mind, his blue-green eyes staring at her with an inscrutable expression. Aoshi had never looked pained in his life; in fact he'd never looked much of anything. Thinking of Aoshi suddenly made Misao feel a fresh new wave of sadness crash over her and she fell asleep crying into her pillow, the pain of the declaration tearing at her heart as if it had happened only yesterday.

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	4. The Wolf Brings Bad News

Disclaimer: None of these characters belong to me. Even the Kuroya. The Kuroya were inspired by the gang in the game Tenchu: Fatal Shadows. Please note that in this story I've altered the Kuroya characters and their personalities from the game, though they're pretty much the same-ish.

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Chapter 3 – The Wolf Brings Bad News

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The next morning Soujiro woke to find himself still outside with a blanket draped over him. He had obviously fallen asleep as he had been looking up at the night sky and now with a stiff neck he shuffled towards the kitchen where he heard someone moving about.

Peeking his head around the door, he saw Kenshin making breakfast for everyone while Kaoru was trying to help but only making a mess of things. Soujiro cleared his throat and rasped, "Uh, good morning!"

"Good morning Soujiro-chan. Did you sleep well? I saw that you fell asleep outside, did Misao-dono kick you out of the room?" Kenshin asked, still focusing on the cooking while Kaoru gave up trying to help and proceeded to wipe her hands of an unknown substance using a dishcloth.

In that brief moment Soujiro felt instantly pained, being reminded of how he used to try and help in the kitchen whenever Kiko was short staffed. The pain was immediate, but fleeting and after a while it dissipated and he regained his composure quickly.

"Oh no, Misao-san didn't kick me out. I just couldn't sleep and I sat outside so that I didn't wake her up with my tossing and turning," Soujiro said, scratching the back of his head in embarrassment.

"Sorry about that, Soujiro-san. If we had known Misao would be paying us a visit as well, I would have organised for Yahiko to stay at the Akabeko during your stay," Kaoru said apologetically.

"It's no trouble really. Though I'm a little worried about the fact that Misao-san fell asleep crying last night," Soujiro said, leaning against the doorway of the kitchen casually.

"Don't worry about her, Soujiro-san. Misao is having some problems at home, but it's nothing she can't handle. She's a strong girl, that she is," Kenshin told him before picking up two breakfast platters, turning to Soujiro and asking cheerfully, "Ready for breakfast?"

Most of that day went by calmly, though Misao kept complaining and causing trouble because she was in a bad mood from lack of sleep the night before. However, the relative peace was disturbed when there was a knock on the door of the dojo. Misao rushed to open it and nearly fell over backwards when she saw who it was.

"Weasel girl," Saito murmured, appraising her after having not seen in two years. After a moment he smirked and pushed passed her into the dojo. He stood in the courtyard and looked around as if he was looking for someone in particular before turning to Kenshin and stating grimly, "I'm assuming you haven't heard then."

"Heard what?" Kenshin asked as he stopped doing the laundry and looked up at Saito in concern.

"Aoshi is on his way into town," Saitou stated before taking a long drag on his cigarette and blowing the smoke out in the direction of Kenshin's laundry, earning him a disapproving frown from the latter.

"Aoshi-sama?" Misao asked in a daze, not even realising that she had just called him by his previous honorific instead of the demoted form of -san. At the thought of him, her emotions yo-yoed. At first she felt her spirits lift at the prospect of seeing him, but after remembering the reason she was there in the first place they dropped again.

"Yes," Saitou affirmed casually, flicking his cigarette butt at her. Instantly Misao took out a kunai and threw it angrily in the direction of the cigarette butt, effectively skewering it on the tree next to Saitou.

Raising an eyebrow in amusement he looked around at the skewered cigarette, noting that her aim had improved considerably, before turning back to them and continuing as if nothing had happened, "It appears that the Oniwabanshuu received a letter threatening your life shortly after you ran off in the night. Guessing that you were here, Aoshi was sent here and he will be arriving within a day or so."

"You're- you've got to be kidding me, right?! Mou! I don't want to see him! That's the last thing I want! Can't they just leave me alone? I can take care of myself!" Misao raged before clumsily running into the dojo, tripping over her kimono slightly in her haste. She didn't want to see Aoshi just yet. She wasn't ready to face him and his accusations. She wasn't over him yet.

"Why are you here then Saitou?" Kenshin asked after Misao had slammed the shoji to her room shut angrily.

"While the Oniwaban received a death threat, my headquarters received information from an insider informant. Which is why I'm involved," Saitou stated, "The informant led us to believe that Kanryu Takeda is organizing an assault against the Oniwabanshuu for causing his downfall over that Megumi woman. However, instead of attacking Aoshi and the Oniwabanshuu head on, he's aiming for the Okashira, which is now obviously the weasel girl. And she's in Tokyo, making it my business instead of someone else's."

"Kanryu Takeda? But shouldn't he be in jail?" Kenshin queried, scrunching up the garment in his hands as he remembered the egotistical businessman.

"His associate Jyuzou Maeda organised to have him sprung from jail," Saitou said bitterly, obviously disappointed about the fact the jail defences weren't adequate enough.

Sighing and rubbing his temples, Saitou added, "In spite of how boringly generic this all is, I took an interest in it as Jyuzou Maeda is head of the Kuroya ninja who have been causing trouble for the police since the Meiji Restoration began. This is the perfect opportunity to find them and remove them. That and retrieve that lunatic, Kanryu."

"So Kanryu is out," Kenshin said quietly before standing up and pinning his washing to the line. He stared at the damp wet fabric for a moment, remembering the carnage that Kanryu had caused with his gattling gun.

The harsh sounds of gunfire and the cries of fallen warriors seared into his mind momentarily before he stalked into the house, leaving Saitou alone in the courtyard without seeing him out. Just as Saitou turned to leave, he heard a shoji slide open and turning around he saw Soujiro standing in the doorway, his hair falling over his eyes slightly as he regarded the policeman with curiosity.

"You're in over your head if you think the Kuroya are just a bunch of pushovers. I could hear it in the way you spoke about them. It's almost as if they were pests," Soujiro told him loudly over the courtyard, having obviously overheard the conversation.

Stepping into the afternoon sun, he blinked against it for a moment before continuing, "I remember Shishio trying to cut a deal with them back when he was organising the Kyoto grand fire; they were originally the ones meant to set the fires for us. No doubt, if his dealings had been successful, Kyoto wouldn't be standing today."

"You're still a fugitive boy, are you sure it's wise for you to be standing in front of a police officer?" Saitou asked, changing the subject. His eyes had narrowed and his hand gently rested on the hilt of his sword in anticipation of a fight. However, Soujiro was in no mood to raise his sword and shook his head slightly at Saitou as if refusing an invitation.

"Oh, I'm not worried. I'm much faster than you, so I'm sure I could get away easily," Soujiro said cheerfully before sitting down on the steps leading into the courtyard, "But as I was saying, don't take the Kuroya lightly, Saitou-san, they're wanted for a reason."

"I'll bear that in mind," Saitou said before leaving the dojo, lighting another cigarette as he went.

After hearing that he had left, Misao slid the shoji to her room open and peeked out, her face tear stained and worried. While she had initially only been worried about Aoshi's arrival in Tokyo, hearing that her life was in danger had broken her out of her brief spell of misery.

While not partaking in the conversation outside, Misao listened curiously through the door as Saitou spoke to both Kenshin and Soujiro. As she heard more she became more and more fearful, remembering how Aoshi had described the battle against Kanryu and how ruthless the industrialist millionaire was.

"Don't worry, Misao-san. Nothing will happen to you," Soujiro said, sensing her fear. He turned around and smiled at her over his shoulder.

"How do you know that nothing will happen to me? You, yourself, said that they weren't to be underestimated," Misao countered fearfully, clutching the edge of the shoji tightly as her emerald green gaze held Soujiro's blue one.

"True. But you forget that you're staying with Kenshin Himura, and I doubt he'd let anything happen to you," Soujiro replied, maintaining his cheerful disposition. As an after thought he added, "Oh, and don't forget that I'm here too. I'll make sure you're safe, so don't even give it a seconds thought."

A little shocked at what he had just said, Misao stared at him in wonderment for a second before bowing her head slightly and smiling at him in appreciation. Her cheeks reddened in embarrassment and she made her way towards bath house, her long black hair billowing behind her.

Soujiro watched her as she went, feeling a familiar sensation stirring within him as he watched her scurry across the courtyard. Ignoring the emotion, he stood up and decided to make his way into to town so he could find out more about the area.


	5. Comforting Words

Disclaimer: None of these characters belong to me…

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Chapter 4 – Comforting Words

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By the time Soujiro came back to the dojo it was late into the night and the only one still awake was Kenshin, who sat waiting for him to come back.

As Soujiro held Kenshin's gaze, he gave the older man an imperceptible nod and Kenshin led him to a more secluded part of the dojo where the girls weren't able to hear them. Sitting down with his back against the wall of the dojo, Soujiro let out a heavy sigh as he felt his emotions rage inside him once more. Memories flashed in his mind and he shut his eyes in attempt to blot them out, though it merely served to clarify them.

"Tell me," Kenshin said, sitting next to the younger man and awaiting to hear about Soujiro's reason for seeking solace with them.

As Soujiro told him all that had happened in the last two years, Kenshin couldn't help but relate to his pain. He too had lost a loved one before and while the circumstances were different, the pain was the same and he knew that it would linger in Soujiro's mind for a very long time. He watched as the young man wiped his tears away before they could fall, containing his emotions and trying to bottle them up the way he used to.

After Soujiro had finished the tragic story of Kiko's death, Kenshin sat in silence for a minute. He wasn't sure what to say to him. He could say nothing that would relieve the sting of loss, nor could he say that he would get over it as he knew better.

Hesitantly he began, "It will hurt for a long time. I know this from my own experience, that I do. It will hurt in places that you didn't realise you had in you and you'll spend many sleepless nights thinking over things that you should have, would have and could have done."

Pausing for a second, Kenshin glanced at Soujiro and noted that he had bowed his head solemnly and was looking into the distance, pain evident in his eyes. His whole posture sagged and his face was set into a blank, distant expression.

"I'm not going to lie to you and tell you that the pain will go away quickly. It will always hurt. But time will help you heal. You have to remember that while she is no longer with you in body, she'll always be with you in spirit and the last thing she'd want you to do is waste your life mourning her, that she wouldn't. In fact, she even told you to be happy. That was her last request. As impossible as it may seem now, you'll find happiness in the end," Kenshin continued, looking up at the sky as he tried to draw from his own memories of Tomoe's death.

Sighing, he unconsciously raised a hand to the cross shaped scar on his face before saying, "There's not much else I can tell you, except that you shouldn't shut the rest of the world out the way that I did. After my wife Tomoe died, I refused to let myself get close to anyone. When I met Kaoru I always kept her at arms length rather than embracing my feelings for her, always fearing that my past would taint her and that I'd only bring her pain. Thankfully, I saw the error of my ways and I've found my happiness with her."

"Hai, but you were lucky enough to find love again. I just… I just feel too deeply for Kiko. She's irreplaceable," Soujiro said shakily.

"I'm not telling you to replace her, that I'm not. You can never replace a loved one, but don't let your memory of Kiko stop you from falling in love and reaching out to someone else. If you do then you'll not only cause yourself pain, but you'll hurt others in the process," Kenshin told him as he remembered how much pain he used to put Kaoru in.

"But what if you had a good reason to," Soujiro asked, looking up at the starlit sky as well before confiding, "What if you had a history like mine? How could you tell someone about that without scaring them? I never told Kiko about it for fear that she'd be the one pulling back."

"Someone who loves you won't care. They'll accept you as you are in your entirety, regardless of whether you have a blood-stained past," Kenshin told the younger man, turning to glance at him again before musing, "I remember having a conversation with Kaoru about my past. I didn't want to talk to her about it at first, but after I had she was so understanding that I felt myself fall in love with her all over again. She didn't care; it was part of me and she loved me for who I was. To me, true love is where you can know all about a person and still love them with all your heart."

Nodding, Soujiro sighed and leant his head back against the wall, shutting his eyes as he remembered Kiko. Her smell, her tinkling laugh, her innocent brown eyes and the way she held his hand… bitter sweet memories.

Burying his hands in his hair and gripping at his head, he let out a heavy sob of regret, tears spilling from his eyes freely. Regret that he hadn't told her that he had loved her before she had died, regret that he had held back, and regret that he couldn't do a thing to save her. His sword skills couldn't save her. Nature had taken its cruel course and stolen her from him.

While Kenshin and Soujiro sat outside, Misao could hear them talking from her room, her trained ears picking up the sound of their voices clearly as she tried to get some sleep. However, she was unable to and she moved to sit outside on the walkway so that she could hear them more clearly, thinking that she might as well listen seeing as they were keeping her up.

What she heard had moved her. She felt something in her call out to Soujiro and she felt the urge to wrap her arms around him and comfort him in his pain, to tell him that everything would be alright. Leaning her head against the supporting pole of the building, she sighed and wondered how what she had just heard applied to her and Aoshi.

Did she love Aoshi absolutely? No, not now. But she had done at one point. Regardless of how he had tried to kill Jiya and how he had become a kill-crazy obsessive, she had still felt deeply for him. But it was an unrequited love. Now, it was simply a heartache that wasn't love; it was torture.

"Right Soujiro," Kenshin said, rising to his feet slowly as Soujiro's crying began to lessen, "I'm sorry I have to leave you, but Kaoru is waiting for me. You'll be alright here, ne?"

"Yeah, don't worry. I'll be alright in a few minutes," Soujiro said, wiping his tears away with the back of his sleeves. He quickly looked up at Kenshin and mumbled, "Thanks for this."

"That's okay, I know you're in pain," Kenshin said with a nod before walking across the courtyard to go back to his and Kaoru's room. He paused however when he found Misao sat silently crying to herself, her eyes closed and her arms wrapped around herself.

When she opened her eyes and realised that Kenshin had seen her she jumped, and she about to speak but his nod silenced her and he continued heading back to his room. Wrapping her arms around herself tighter, she headed back to her room, not wanting Soujiro to know that she had heard what he and Kenshin had been talking about.

Once back in her room she settled under her covers and stared up at the ceiling silently, thinking about her life. _True love is where you can know all about a person and still love them with all your heart…_ the phrase stuck in her mind, refusing to leave her thoughts. It was with that thought in mind that she drifted into such a deep sleep that the sound of Soujiro coming inside and settling into bed didn't wake her.


	6. Third Rate Ninja

Disclaimer: None of these characters belong to me…

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Chapter 5 – Third Rate Ninja

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Misao jerked awake, sensing that there was something in the surrounding area that shouldn't be there.

Getting up quickly and she hurrying over to the shoji, she slid it open soundlessly before looking around the courtyard suspiciously.

It was early morning and the wind was howling loudly through the trees, whipping up the dust around the courtyard into majestic swirls in the air and Misao could faintly hear the sound of birds calling. While it seemed peaceful at first, Misao could feel that there was something not right.

At the same moment she heard another shoji slide open and saw Kenshin step out, his sword in hand. Sliding the shoji open completely, Misao also stepped outside, pulling her yukata around her tightly as she looked out onto the silent courtyard. Turning to Kenshin she was about to say something when he raised a hand to quiet her, his eyes narrowed as he looked around him.

Meanwhile, Soujiro had also woken up and grabbed his sword as soon as he sensed the aggressive presence. Getting to his feet quickly and silently, he gently took hold of Misao's arm and slowly dragged her back into the room before stepping out onto the walkway and drawing his sword. Misao gasped upon seeing him draw his sword and she took a couple of steps back.

"What-what's going on?" Misao asked in a hushed whisper. She could sense the presence coming nearer and she felt fear grip her as she remembered what Saitou had come to talk to them about yesterday. Stuttering, she asked, "Is that… who I think it is?"

"Quiet," Soujiro whispered back. He looked out onto the courtyard cautiously, trying to sense where the assassin was. Turning back to Misao he told her, "Get dressed appropriately and then come back outside." With that said, he slid the shoji shut noisily before making his way over to Kenshin, his grip on his sword tightening slightly.

"Who is it?" Kenshin asked in a low voice, his eyes still fixed on his surroundings. The ki was definitely offensive, intent to murder, though the assassin wasn't very skilled. He was too easy to sense.

"It's one of the Kuroya," Soujiro replied quickly, trying to remember as much as he could about the Kuroya ninja.

He had met three of them on one occasion when he was acting as Shishio's bodyguard as they met to discuss their involvement in his plans. They were well-trained assassins that knew exactly what they were doing, each being quietly confident in their skills.

The leader, Jyuzou, didn't seem to carry any weapons aside form his parasol while his two bodyguards, Ranzou and Shinogi, both carried swords. However this presence stalking them at that moment was neither of those ninja; it wasn't nearly as good as them.

Sighing in frustration, Soujiro groaned, "I don't know who this one is. All I know is that it's definitely not the ones I've seen."

Meanwhile, Misao panicked in her room, getting together her onimitsu outfit and throwing it on hurriedly. Gathering her kunai, she shoved it into her belt before trying her hair up into a messy bun and stepping outside, bristling at the cold morning air.

She was so shocked by the cold atmosphere on her skin that she nearly didn't see a star shaped kunai flying towards her face, however she quickly sensed it and dodged it in the nick of time.

Instantly on guard, she didn't allow herself to even look at the projectile and instead looked in the direction it came from, her own kunai poised to be thrown. Aiming, she expertly threw one of her own in that general direction and she heard a satisfying grunt and smash from behind the warehouse. Realising she had landed a direct hit she cried out triumphantly, "Gotcha! Idiot!"

Kenshin, Soujiro and Misao stepped out into the morning light and hurried over to the direction they'd heard the noise and when Misao saw what she had managed to hit she couldn't help but asking in bewilderment, "Soujiro, I thought you said that the Kuroya were all highly skilled assassins?"

"They are. Except for this one, evidently," he replied, looking down at the wincing figure that was clutching his shoulder in order to stem the bleeding caused by Misao's imbedded kunai. Gently nudging the failed assassin with his foot, he asked, "Why are you here?"

"I've been sent to assassinate the Oniwaban okashira," the assassin said, growling ever so slightly as Soujiro nudged him.

The answer, however, wasn't the one that Misao was looking for and angrily she irritably grabbed her kunai and ruthlessly took it out from his shoulder, causing him to cry out in pain. Kenshin was surprised by Misao's sudden act of brutality and when he turned to look at her he noticed that her face was set into a determined, emotionless mask. _It seems as if Aoshi has been rubbing off on her_, he thought to himself as he watched her slide her kunai back into her belt.

Noticing that he was watching her, Misao shrugged and exclaimed, "I'm not gonna waste a kunai on this guy. And anyway, it will hurt less now that I took it out."

"It still fucking hurt!" the assassin cried, clutching at his small wound and glaring up at her.

"Well, I'll make it hurt even more if you don't tell me what you're really here for!" Misao yelled, pulling the kunai out again and pointing it at his face threateningly, her eyes wide with rage.

"Alright! Okay! Please!" he cried in fear, backing away from her before telling them, "It's true that I'm not here on a mission to kill the okashira. I'm here to gather information on those guarding her. But I thought I could take her out quickly and so I decided that I could prove myself to Jyuzou by killing her off myself."

"Well, I'm glad to say that you're sadly mistaken in your assumption that Misao-san is easy to kill. Not only can she fight for herself, but she has the former hattokiri 'Battousai' and myself looking after her. I'm actually surprised that you didn't know that," Soujiro told the assassin, smiling innocently.

"I was told little about my reconnaissance mission. I was just told to find out who else was here along with the Battousai," the assassin replied despondently, his posture relaxing as he realised he was defeated. He looked up at the Oniwabanshuu okashira and her green-eyed glare told him that he wasn't going to get out of this in anyway.

"Well, seeing as we have you here now, I think you should tell us a little bit about Jyuzou and his plans," Misao said, her eyes narrowing slightly as she waited for his response.

"I can't tell you!" the man cried fearfully, his eyes widening as he saw the expression on Misao's face. He back away from her some more before sobbing, "They'll kill me if I tell you anything!"

"Misao-dono…" Kenshin interjected before she could put any more pressure on him. Misao looked up at Kenshin irritably for a few seconds before her expression softened and she looked down at the ninja who was cowering at her feet. When had she turned so cruel? She guiltily turned away from them to look out on the courtyard as she heard Kenshin pull the man onto his feet.

"I'm not doing this to spite you Misao-dono. I'm doing this because you don't want the guilt of this man's death on your hands," Kenshin told her, obviously mistaking her guilt for irritation.

She looked bowed her head in contemplation for a moment before she felt a hand clamp down on her shoulder. Expecting it to be Kenshin, Misao turned around and instead found Soujiro staring at her in concern and she felt her heart do little flips in her chest as she stared into his dark blue eyes. She blinked at him blankly for a moment before smiling and giving him a small nod, her eyes slipping to where Kenshin had guided the ninja to.

"Kenshin, what's going on?" Kaoru asked as she left her room, still dressed in her yukata. She looked at the three of them in concern before she spotted the intruder and her eyes widened in surprise.

Sensing her distress, Kenshin smiled up at her and said, "Don't worry Kaoru, we just had another unexpected visitor. But don't worry, Misao made sure he won't bother us any more."

"Well, okay… but don't forget to make breakfast, otherwise I'll have to subject our guests to my cooking," Kaoru warned as she went back into her room to change, still a little unnerved at the fact there was an intruder in her home.

"Right, well, I think I'll take this little scoundrel down to the police station then," Misao said cheerily, grabbing the assassin by the back of the collar and dragging him across the courtyard with surprising ease. She hated causing trouble for her guests and there was no way that she was going to let this third rate ninja cause them anymore trouble. Readjusting her grip on his collar she continued to drag him away, whilst he flailed in mild confusion.

Raising an eyebrow in surprise, Kenshin wondered just how much Misao had trained and improved over two years; she seemed a lot stronger and more accurate with her kunai, which had shocked him a little seeing as she was usually always missing.

"Wait a second Misao," Kenshin said, placing a hand gently on the one that was clutching onto the assassin's collar. Although she had improved in skill, he still worried about her safety, "I think you should stay here. It's unsafe for you to go out alone while dragging along someone intent on murdering you."

"Pssht. He can't hurt me. Besides, I'm not going to sit here all day and wait for someone to come out and murder me. I'm a sitting duck if I stay here," Misao reasoned, her grip on the assassin's collar tightening as she stared at Kenshin indignantly.

"I'll go with Misao-san," Soujiro offered as he re-sheathed his sword.

"Kami-sama! I don't need to be baby-sat!" Misao bit out angrily, her eyes glaring at the two samurai with resentment. Once again, people were looking down on her as if she was a child; she was a young woman of 18 for heaven's sake! She could take care of herself! She pouted irritably as she saw the two men exchange glances with one another.

"I'm not going because you need to baby-sat, I'm going because I want to," Soujiro said cheerfully, shrugging his shoulders lightly.

She stared at him through narrowed eyes before giving him a silent nod and continuing to walk out, Soujiro trailing behind. Kenshin stood staring at the pair of them in confusion before shrugging and heading back to his bedroom so he could change out of his yukata.


	7. Moving On

Disclaimer: None of these characters belong to me…

-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-

Chapter 6 – Moving on

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Misao ignored Soujiro completely as she dragged the assassin out of the dojo. Like a cat that had been rubbed the wrong way, Misao was practically bristling with anger at Soujiro feeling that he had to come and protect her. It was patronising, annoying and totally unnecessary. Unlike before, she could look after herself. She had trained so hard over the past couple of years, knowing that she had been a liability to everyone back then when the Aoiya had been under attack, and she had wanted to be stronger. So she trained harder than she ever had. And for what? For people to still treat her as if she was a child? It was frustrating.

Angrily, Misao tugged at the assassins collar extra hard, causing the man to yelp and reach his hands up towards his throat. She ignored his yelps, ignored the stares of the people who watched her drag him along. While it probably did look quite comical, she was too wrapped up in her frustration and anger to think it was funny and she glared up at people who giggled.

"Mi-Misao-san," Soujiro said, feeling that she was maybe scaring everyone around her just a little too much. However, when she turned her death-glare on him, any other words he would have said were stifled.

He knew she was angry that he had come with her, but considering how reckless she was being, he couldn't very well leave her on her own even though she insisted she could look after herself. If he had been in this position a couple of years ago he probably would have let her go alone, but he had learn all too well since then that girls were fragile and needed to be looked after; even if the girl wasn't willing to accept protection. He watched Misao as she dragged the assassin behind her, how her hips swayed as she walked, the way her muscles tensed as she tugged harder on the collar in her hand and the light in her eyes as she glared at the amused onlookers. He didn't really understand why this girl was so angry.

As they arrived at the police station, Misao turned to Soujiro and snapped, "Stay out here. Unless you intend to talk for me as well."

Soujiro merely nodded and waited outside as Misao turned the assassin over. He looked down the street at all the people bustling about their daily lives. It should have been him living his life normally. It should have been him instead of that other young man holding hands with that girl. He should have had a normal life with Kiko. Kiko... memories of her face ran through his head and he raised a hand to his head in pain. He didn't want to think of her; he had to put her out of his mind. Memories of her were useless now, they just made him weak.

He was broken out of his internal conflict when he saw Misao stalk past him, looking over her shoulder at him in irritation before facing ahead and proudly walking off by herself. Soujiro sighed and followed her once more, emotionlessly watching her slink through the crowds, no longer drawing attention to herself now that she had disposed of her cargo. He followed her pace, finding it far too easy to keep up with her. They walked on like this in silence for a while until they reached a crossroad which seemed relatively deserted. Misao stopped in her tracks and suddenly whirled round to glare at him, her eyes glistening with unshed tears.

"Enough," she told him angrily. "Stop following me. I don't need to be looked after anymore. You can go. I'll look after myself."

"I can't leave a girl who is wanted and in danger to walk around on her own," he replied, though not with as much spirit as he should have.

Her face twisted in anger as she spat, "I'm not a girl! You stupid boy! I'm a woman!"

For some reason, at that moment, Soujiro felt as if a spell on him had broken. He looked at her with new eyes. With surprise he realised that even in her anger, she was actually quite beautiful and that she was right, she was a woman in every sense of the word. Proud, indignant and confident of herself, she was a woman and not the girl he had kept thinking of her as. He felt a sharp sensation in his chest as he stared back at her in surprise. The immaturity was actually frustration. She was so frustrated that she was actually crying. She was frustrated that everyone kept looking down at her. He realised now. He took a step towards her as she angrily wiped a tear away with the back of her hand and she immediately backed away.

"Don't come near me. I don't need your pity."

"Misao," Soujiro said, taking a step towards her again. This time instead of stepping backwards she angrily ran towards him at full speed, causing him to jump out of her way and he watched as she swiftly climbed the wall of a random house and disappeared over the roof. He could have easily followed her, and he knew he should, but he sensed something. He focused on the presence and recognised almost instantly. Aoishe. So he had been watching her.

Knowing that Aoishe would look after her, Soujiro headed back to the dojo, reflecting over what had happened. So she was a woman, like Kiko. But no, she wasn't like Kiko at all. She was altogether more different. Kiko had been delicate and gentle, but Misao...

"Soujiro!" Kenshin cried out to him as he entered the dojo.

Soujiro gave a little wave and forced a smile, causing Kenshin to frown and ask, "Where is Misao? I thought you followed her with the intent of making sure she gets back safely."

"Oh, I did, but she's being watched over by someone else and I think she was just growing angrier and angrier at my presence, so I decided to give her some space for a while."

"Being watched over by someone else?"

Soujiro nodded. "Yes. Shinamori-san. He was following her the entire time she left the dojo. My presence wasn't needed."

After explaining to Kaoru and Kenshin where exactly Misao was, Kenshin had pulled him aside for another chat. This time, instead of talking about Kiko, Kenshin asked him, "What do you plan to do with your life from here on, Soujiro-san?"

It was a question that sent dread up his spine. He didn't want to think about it. He didn't want to think about the future. After meeting Kiko, he had given up his wandering ways. He had been perfectly comfortable settling down in that town, so he knew that he couldn't return to being a rurouni for as long as Kenshin had been. But even so, what was he planning to do now? Without Kiko, he had no direction; it was the reason he had come to Kenshin in the first place.

"If I'm being honest, I really have no idea. I lost my direction when Kiko died," Soujiro told Kenshin, leaning against the well and watching Kaoru as she played with the local doctor's children.

Kenshin followed Soujiro's gaze and smiled. "You wanted to build a life with her?"

"She _was_ my life."

"Well Soujiro. You didn't die when she did, so that means you have a life of your own. And she wanted you to be happy. If you live in the past and continue to let the ghosts of yesterday haunt you, you're never going to be happy like she wanted you to be," Kenshin said, smiling at Soujiro as the young man gritted his teeth and glared down at his feet. He understood what Kenshin was telling him, but it just wasn't that easy. Even though he wanted to break free from it, it was easier said than done. "You'll be ignoring her last wishes if you keep thinking you can live running away from it," Kenshin added.

"I know that!" Soujiro yelled, causing Kaoru and the children to look up at him in alarm. Realising he was scaring them he took a deep breath and continued, "I just don't know what I'm meant to do. It's not like I can find a normal job. I only have one skill. And I'm not like you. You're lucky you found this place, you're lucky you found Kaoru. I'm pretty sure I can't love again. Not the way I loved her."

"You know, Kaoru wasn't my first love," Kenshin told Soujiro, glancing at the young man who perked up in curiosity and Kenshin smiled kindly at him. "I think that's enough for today. But seriously Soujiro, you need to start thinking about what you want to do from here onwards."

"Maybe you could become a swordsman in search of love, that would be something surprising to see," Kaoru said with a giggle, having listened to the whole thing. She smiled up kindly at Soujiro, and he sadly returned the smile.

Standing upright, Soujiro turned to Kenshin and said, "Even though I don't wish to kill again, I can't make a promise never to do it again. However, I don't believe Shishio-sama's beliefs anymore. I'm still trying to find out my own beliefs, so maybe I should try to finding my own truth first. Though I like Kaoru-san's romantic idea."

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Misao sighed as she watched Soujiro walk away. The smiling freak who no longer smiled. He pulled an expression like she had punched him earlier, so shocked at her words. Was it really that shocking that she was a woman and not a girl? Looking over Tokyo, she felt a pang of loneliness. She wanted to return to Kyoto. She wanted to cry into Okon's lap, cuddle Okina and help in the restaurant. That place was where she was happiest being. But she couldn't be happy with him around; it hurt too much. She didn't like being around someone that she couldn't have, she was just spoilt like that. That was one part of her that was childish.

The wind rustled through her hair as she shut her eyes and tried to stop her never-ending tears. It was in that rush of wind that she smelled a familiar scent and she was immediately on her guard as she concentrated on the surrounding area, trying to sense his presence. Sure enough, he was there, not far away from her, watching her cry.

"Aoishe," she mumbled, knowing he'd hear her, despite her incoherence. She shifted uncomfortably as she heard him sit himself next to her

"Misao, you need to come home. I can't protect you here and you're inconveniencing Kenshin and Kaoru," he told her coldly, in that same tone of voice he had always used with her.

Wordlessly, Misao stood up, broadening her view of Tokyo's rooftops. "You don't need to look after me. Please don't feel obligated to."

"It's not obligation. I just want to," he told her, his tone softening slightly as he looked in the direction of the Kamiya dojo. Misao stared down at him in surprise and she began to hope again. Was it possible he regretted it? Regretted her leaving?

"Aoishe-sama," she began, still looking down at him. "How do you see me? What am I to you?"

Aoishe looked up at her blankly before tugging on her hand, pulling her down to him and into a hug. He protectively placed a hand on the back of her head as he said, "You're my little Misao. My friend and my responsibility. I wish I could love you the way you want to be loved, but I've seen you grow up, watched you grow into what you are now. I feel more like a second father or an older brother to you rather than a lover. I just want you to be happy."

At this, Misao began to sob. She clutched at Aoishe's huge shoulders and sobbed into the lapels of his coat. She hated him, and loved him at the same time. Why did it have to be like this? "I love you Aoishe-sama. I feel like I've loved you since I was born."

"I know. Thank you Misao for loving me," he told her, stroking the back of her head as she sobbed into his chest. She continued to cry. She cried for all of the times her heart broke at the thought of him, for all of those times she had got her hopes up that he could love her back. But now, he was being honest with her for once, and she felt a sort of release with each new tear she shed for him. Was this... moving on?


	8. The Spark That Lit the Flame

Disclaimer: None of these characters belong to me…

-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-X-

Chapter 7 – The Spark That Lit the Flame

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It was dusk when Misao shuffled her way back into the dojo with Aoishe. She was worn out from crying and she leant on him for support. She felt pathetic for leaning on him, but at the same time she felt more at ease resting on him. Her feelings had subsided and her rage had disappeared. She had come to terms with the reality of their relationship and she felt the most relaxed she had felt in a long time.

"Tadaima," Misao said, as Kaoru and Kenshin looked up from what they were doing and stare at the pair of them in shock. Kaoru looked at them warily whilst Kenshin simply gave Aoishe an awkward smile. Aoishe gave him a grim nod in response and let go of Misao as Kaoru rushed over.

"I'll be leaving now," Aoishe told them and turned to leave, however he stopped when Misao grabbed his coat. Turning around he said to her, "I'll be staying in a nearby inn so I don't disturb you. Please don't make trouble for your hosts." And with that he left.

Kaoru watched Aoishe leave before turning to Misao and asking, "Is everything alright?"

"Yeah," Misao said, nodding meekly. She watched as Aoishe's back disappeared and said, "He helped me get over him. He told me the truth; that he sees me like a younger sister or a daughter. I realise now... I was deluding myself all these years."

Kaoru pulled her into a hug, expecting her to cry, but Misao just sighed. "Don't worry. I don't have any tears left to cry for him. I'm over it. Finally."

Misao broke away from Kaoru and headed back to her room. She was tired. She just wanted to crawl under the covers of her futon and sleep. However, just as she got to her room, she noticed Soujiro seated where he had sat that first night they had stayed there. When he saw her, he smiled at her awkwardly and she looked down at her feet in shame. She remembered how she had yelled at him with no real provocation and she felt a little embarrassed about it. It was no wonder that everyone thought of her as a child.

"Soujiro-san," she began, heading over to where he sat and seating herself next to him cautiously. "I'm very sorry about my outburst earlier. It was childish of me."

She fiddled with her skirt as she waited for his response; but he made none, all she could hear was the rustle of fabric and trees as the wind swept through the courtyard. Feeling on edge, she was about to get up, but when he turned his head to look at her she paused and felt frozen on the spot by the expression he wore. He smiled at her. It wasn't the smile he usual wore; it was an open, gentle smile that caused her heart to skip a beat.

"You don't have to apologise to me, Misao-san. I should apologise to you," he said. He bowed his head a fraction as he said, "I'm sorry that I didn't realise you were a woman sooner." He stood up and turned to her with a sheepish grin. "I promise I won't forget that in the future."

A strange sensation spread throughout her body as Misao watched Soujiro wander across the courtyard and out of the dojo. What... was that? That smile and that promise he just made her? And why had her heart skipped a beat like that?! Rubbing the back of her head in confusion, she got up and headed to her room, but she stopped when she realised that Soujiro had left the dojo. Where was he going?!

Soujiro decided it was best that he go for a short walk to clear his head. He mulled over what Kenshin had told him and he laid a hand gently on the hilt of his sword, remembering what it was like to fight Kenshin for the first time. Even though he didn't wish to kill anyone in cold blood anymore, he missed the exhilaration of battle. It had been a while since had used the Shukuchi and he wondered if he could still do it. He glanced up and down the street to make sure that it was still empty before testing himself. Aiming for the sakura tree at the end of the street, he launched into the Shukuchi and he instantly noticed the difference in his performance. He was initially sluggish from lack of training, but it felt easier to fall back into step. Although dimly aware of it, he had grown in the past couple of years and despite being skinny and almost feminine back when he served Shishio, he had filled out and evidently his muscles had grown stronger too. He stopped just short of the tree and he exhaled. Looking over his shoulder, he examined the damage he had done to the pavement before smiling to himself and turning the corner at the end of the street.

It was just as he turned the corner that something caught his attention. He sensed someone following him and instinctively looked up at the roof just above him. He just about caught a glimpse of a long plait and he chuckled. Stopping, he smiled up at the roof and called out, "Misao-san, why are you following me?"

"I-I'm not following you!" she replied from the roof, refusing to show herself. He heard her jump to another roof and he felt the urge to follow her.

Pushing down on one foot, he forced himself to jump upwards and onto the roof of the building she had just been on. He watched her hop from roof to roof like a grasshopper and watched as she swiftly scaled a taller building and once on top, she stood tall and looked around her. Following her, though having a little more difficulty keeping balance they way she had done, Soujiro stopped just a roof away from her and he felt himself frozen to the spot as he stared at her in the dying light of dusk.

Her hair was in its usual long braid and the wind blew around her, the ribbon that secured her clothes into place fluttering as her hair did. Turned to the side, he was able to fully appreciate her slender figure in the light and he felt a strange sensation spread through him as his eyes travelled down her body, taking in her womanly curves. She looked beautiful standing there. Full of pride, determination and promise, her green eyes glistened with a spirit he had never seen in a girl's eyes. Not even Kiko's. Soujiro felt his cheeks colour as he realised what he was thinking and he felt disgusted with himself for thinking such thoughts. She smiled against the breeze before noticing Soujiro and jumping slightly.

"Wh-what are you doing up here?" she asked, taking a step back in surprise.

Soujiro, still frozen on the spot, opened his mouth to speak, but found himself unable to. Even when she frowned at him, he couldn't stop staring at her. It began to make her nervous and immediately Soujiro snapped out of it. Nervously, he said, "I- err, I was just... seeing what you're doing up here and making sure that you're alright."

"There you go again, seeing me as a child," Misao nagged as she sat down where she was and continued to look out at Tokyo.

"No, not at all. I'm seeing you as child Misao-san," Soujiro told her before hopping roofs and standing not far from where she sat.

"Oh, so how do you see me?" she asked boredly as she watched the sunset.

Before he realised what he was saying, Soujiro said, "I see you as a woman."

Misao looked up at Soujiro in surprise, puzzled by his meaning. Quickly realising his error, he quickly added, "As a woman, I still feel that I have to make sure you're alright."

They fell silent once again for a moment before they both sensed something. Tensing and listening careful. They both jumped when they heard a bloodcurdling shriek coming from a nearby alleyway and before Soujiro could stop her, Misao jumped off of the roof and landed into the alley. He was surprised by her cat like grace as she almost immediately straightened to attention and he followed her, landing next to her a little more roughly as she took in the scene.

Before them they saw a cloaked man shoving a young woman up against a wall, a knife to her throat as he tugged at her clothes roughly. He stopped moving as he saw them land, though he didn't move. Unperturbed by their appearance, he watched them take in the scene and immediately Soujiro noticed something wasn't right. This was no ordinary robbery or rape. When he saw the woman shift underneath the pressure of the knife at her throat, Soujiro immediately sensed that the scene was staged and pushed Misao out of the way.

"What the-" she shrieked, but she had the words knocked out of her as she saw two kunai fly past her ear. She looked up at Soujiro and blinked as she saw him disappear as she had watch him do earlier, unable to keep track of his form as he flew towards the pair.

"Misao-san, run back to the Kamiya dojo," Soujiro yelled as he drew his sword and slashed at the two people in one motion, causing them to immediately jump apart and settle into defensive stances, circling him whilst keeping an eye on Misao. Adjusting the grip of the sword in his hand, Soujiro concentrated on settling his emotions. He could feel their offensive auras pressuring him and he forced himself to smile as they continued circling him. Meanwhile, Misao simply watched on, shocked and unwilling to move. She didn't want to leave Soujiro alone.

"Misao-san, please get out of here!" Soujiro yelled once more, growing angrier that she wasn't listening to him. This situation was difficult. He was fighting two skilled assassins that were obviously from the Kuroya. One of the presences were familiar and he knew the other one was in league with the other. They circled him cautiously, knowing instantly that he was the threat, not her.

"But I can't leave you here!" she cried back angrily, drawing her kunai out.

Growling angrily, Soujiro jumped into shukuchi and hurtled towards the male attacker. He had to make an opening of some sort. Swinging his sword horizontally, the man jumped back and Soujiro immediately swung his sword behind him towards the woman who moved in from behind. Misao watched with eyes wide as she saw his sword swing so quickly, cutting through the air and clashing with the knives that the attackers had pulled out. She felt completely unable to help.

Once again, Soujiro jumped into shukuchi, running behind the female attacker and attacking her from behind. Unable to dodge the attack, the woman fell forward, spitting out blood as she hurtled towards her accomplice. It was then that the man pulled his cloak away from his face and stared at Soujiro head-on as the woman clutched at his cloak. The assassin had short unruly hair, wore all black and had two kodachi strapped to his back. He was small in stature and obviously relied on his speed and agility.

"Ah, I see you're not any less relentless than you were back then, Soujiro-chan, though you're not nearly as smiley as you used to be," the man teased, pushing the woman away from him with his foot, causing her to wince and pant. Blood began to pool around where she sat and Soujiro could see the life going out in her eyes.

"Sou-Soujiro-san, who is that?" Misao asked, backing away slightly as Soujiro backed away from the remaining attacker and towards Misao.

"Ranzou of the Kuroya," Soujiro said, glancing down at the injured woman.

"Ranzou-sama. I'm sorry," the injured woman whimpered. She was about to say more, but stopped when she saw Ranzou's expression as he stared down at her. He was smiling.

"That man, he enjoys the pain of women," Soujiro said wearily, realising that his opponent had been holding back on him. Soujiro sheathed his sword and settled into a stance for battojutsu as he stared at Ranzou expressionlessly.

"Ah, come on now Soujiro-chan, I don't wanna fight ya for the filly. If I had known you were gonna be with her, I wouldn't have even bothered coming out tonight. Even though I do love seeing that girly face of yours," Ranzou teased, tossing aside his cloak and totally forgetting about the dying woman on the floor next to him. "Goddamn though, that Oniwaban girl is fine. I was told she was a kid, but a kid she ain't."

Misao blushed before biting out, "Shut your mouth! You damn pervert."

"Make me, bitch," Ranzou goaded, his eyes roaming her body and making her feel violated simply by his stare. Soujiro remained expressionless as he watched Ranzou's movements. Even though Ranzou seemed very relaxed and happily teased them, Soujiro could still sense the assassin's killing intent. And it wasn't intent towards him, it was towards Misao.

"Well, little missy, I'll have my fun with you later, once I've dealt with your little boyfriend here," Ranzou hissed, unsheathing his kodachi.

"Boyfriend?!" Misao stuttered in disbelief.

Soujiro kept his eyes on Ranzou as he said, "Misao, get out of here now."

The tone in Soujiro's voice was commanding and whilst she initially didn't want to leave him, she knew Soujiro was concerned for her safety. Turning to leave she jumped up and was about to grab onto the ledge of the nearby roof, but before she could even react a kunai hurtled towards her and struck her on the upper arm. Instantly dropping back to the ground, Misao looked in wide eyed disbelief at first her arm and then the direction the kunai came from; it came from the dying woman. Alarmed, Soujiro turned around and saw Misao on the floor. Taking the chance, Ranzou sprinted towards him and Soujiro turned back just in time to withdraw his sword and block.

"Shit that hurts!" Misao shrieked, grabbing the kunai and bracing herself before pulling it out of her arm. She screamed in pain and kicked at the ground as she threw the kunai away from her and clutched at her arm.

"Ah, that sound," Ranzou said blissfully between slashes and he and Soujiro clashed swords. "Her scream is so pleasant. I'll definitely take my time with her when I get her. I promise you that."

Soujiro felt rage build up in him at his words and he jumped into shukuchi, circling Ranzou and throwing the assassin off balance. Ranzou whirled round and haphazardly slashed his kodachi as Soujiro continued to circle around him and confuse him. Suddenly, the floor pounding stopped and Ranzou immediately looked up to see Soujiro bearing down on him with his sword. Misao turned away as Soujiro's sword impacted with its target and she heard a strangled cry as the sword pierced through bone. Turning back, she watched with baited breath as Soujiro rested on the hilt of the sword that had gone right through Ranzou's shoulder, a manic expression in his eyes. Ranzou coughed up blood but also sneered as he looked at the kodachi that he had plunged into Soujiro's leg as he had come down on him. Both men didn't move for a moment, waiting to see which would drop first.

Misao breathed a sigh of relief as Ranzou fell backwards, dropping his other kodachi as Soujiro roughly tugged his sword from Ranzou's body. Ranzou wasn't dead, but he had no energy left as blood bubbled from his wound. Soujiro stumbled backwards breathing heavily and glaring at the sword in his leg. He gritted his teeth as he gripped the hilt of the short sword and pulled it out, causing a small blood spray. Flinging it away, he forced himself to get up, supporting himself on the wall next to him. He was about to turn around and see if Misao was okay when he felt her take a hold of his arm and swing it over her shoulder, to help support him. Wide-eyed, he stared at her as she dragged him away from the wall, taking his full weight on her shoulders in spite of her own wound. She cast one last glance on the scene before they wordlessly headed back to the dojo.


End file.
